Abstract

Liquid-crystalline(LC)polymers containing methoxy- or butoxy-substituted azobenzene in side chains have been prepared via radical addition of the in advance synthesized nematic thiols onto double bonds of poly(butadiene)diol [Polakova et al., Pol. Bull. 54, 315–326 (2010)]. In the present work, thermal behavior of these comblike polymers has been characterized by differential scanning calorimetry and polarizing optical microscopy. LCtransitions have been also determined by rheological measurement. Time–temperature superposition of mechanical functions has been successfully applied to samples undergoing direct nematic/glassy state transition.